Joe Manchin said he won't be endorsing anyone for president 'right now'
WASHINGTON — Sen. Joe Manchin, the centrist Democrat from West Virginia, said in an interview Monday that he won’t be endorsing any presidential candidate at the moment.
When asked by CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins on “The Source” whether Manchin would endorse President Joe Biden, he said “I'm not endorsing anybody right now. We’re going to see what all happens.”
“We still got plenty of time here,” he added. “I’m going to do everything I can, to help move them, back to the middle, and show them where the strength of this country lies, where the voting bloc of the country lies.”
Last week, Manchin announced at an event in West Virginia that he won’t be seeking a presidential run after debating for months whether to launch a third-party bid. He said he would be involved in making sure “we secure a president who has the knowledge, has the function and has the ability to bring this country together.”
Asked by Collins whether Biden is that candidate, Manchin argued that the president has gone “too far left.”
“They've pushed him and pulled him and whatever. But that's not where America is. That's not where our country is,” Manchin said. “So I'm hoping the Joe Biden that we saw in 2020 will be the Joe Biden we see in 2024 if that can be done. If not, it's going to be a long road for everybody.”
Manchin added that what Americans are witnessing are “extremes.”
“Donald Trump is an extremist. And with that there's people that are going in that direction. I still believe there's enough good Republicans and Democrats that want this centrist type of approach to governing,” he said.
He argued that the Senate's failure to pass the border bill earlier this month played a "big part" in his decision not to run for president, saying that, "I saw my friends walk away, when they were determined, to pass a border security. And they were on board three days before that. And with Donald Trump, coming as hard as he came at them, and they cowered down and walked away? I said we’re not fixing anything in Washington.”
When asked what happens if Biden and Trump are on the ticket in November, Manchin said “we’ll just have to see what happens.”
“Right now, there might be other people getting in. There are still independents,” Manchin said. “You just might have still a third-party run from No Labels. And we’ll just see what opportunities and what type of options you have.”
Contributing: Karissa Waddick